Each novella was published in two formats: standard hardback and deluxe hardback. The BBC's licence specifically allowed only hardback releases, although following further negotiations two of the novellas were reprinted in trade paperback (as opposed to the standard paperback format used by BBC Books). Deluxe editions were also published, were often autographed by the author and/or an actor from the TV series; the deluxe edition of Nightdreamers was signed by the author, the illustrator, and actress Katy Manning, who wrote the foreword and whose character Jo Grant appears in the book.

Characters from the novella The Cabinet of Light were spun off into the Time Hunter series of novellas by Telos.

Each of the eight incarnations of the Doctor (as of 2004) were featured in at least one release, with two releases - The Cabinet of Light and The Dalek Factor - featuring an unspecified incarnation of the Doctor.

The series was discontinued in 2004 as BBC Books prepared to launch a new series of books tying in with the series revival. In 2006, BBC Books launched Quick Reads, a new series of novella-length adventures.